Conservationists release ratings for state legislators

Colorado Conservation Voters works to turn conservation values into Colorado priorities by advocating for strong environmental policies, endorsing conservation-minded candidates, and holding elected officials accountable. Thomas Friedman made one of the best cases for what we do when he wrote in the New York Times, “the greenest thing you can do is this: Choose the right leaders.” This is the premise of Colorado Conservation Voters.

Looking at the votes cast by El Paso County state legislators, the nonprofit advocacy group found that, on the whole, ours are a pretty disappointing lot.

Rep. Pete Lee

Our Republican House delegation got failing marks, averaging the low 30s out of 100, with 100 being the best. Rep. Marsha Looper stood out in the delegation, receiving a score of 8.

Senate Majority Leader John Morse

Our sole Democratic representative, Pete Lee, was one of the 22 House legislators statewide to receive a perfect 100.

On the Senate side, our Republican representatives all got failing marks, from Kent Lambert's rating of 50, down to Bill Cadman's 14.

Again, the lone Democrat from El Paso County, John Morse, received a perfect ranking.

CCV describes the scorecard as a way to highlight "the priorities of the conservation community in the 2012 legislative session. You will find factual, nonpartisan information about how each member of the legislature voted on important issues that affect Colorado’s air, land, water and people."